Eliciting Expertise

Since the last edition of this book there have been rapid developments in the use and exploitation of formally elicited knowledge. Previously, (Shadbolt and Burton, 1995) the emphasis was on eliciting knowledge for the purpose of building expert or knowledge-based systems. These systems are computer programs intended to solve real-world problems, achieving the same level of accuracy as human experts. Knowledge engineering is the discipline that has evolved to support the whole process of specifying, developing and deploying knowledge-based systems (Schreiber et al., 2000) This chapter will discuss the problem of knowledge elicitation for knowledge intensive systems in general

Protection of cultural heritage in forestry : a case study in Southern Sweden

Intensive forestry in Sweden exerts high pressure on forest ecosystem services. This includes the cultural heritage of forests. Where today, timber production dominates as a primary use, the forest had very diverse functions a few decades ago. Since these elements are often present but hardly known or visible, this can lead to a conflict of use between forestry and cultural preservation. A place where this contrast between past diverse use and current forestry dominated use exist is Tranemåla in Blekinge county in the South of Sweden. The aim of this work is to make this diverse past use of Tranemåla visible again and to reconcile forest management and the visibility of cultural history. For this purpose, a qualitative survey was carried out in the area, mapping the cultural-historical elements. Fifteen different types of cultural relics were recorded during the mapping, including stone walls, tar valleys, torps, stone ovens, and boundary stones among others. In addition, comparison with historical maps made it possible to visualize the evolution of the landscape over the last 200 years. In particular, the development of roads and stone walls that have been built over the years to make the land more accessible became visible through the comparison. Based on this, recommendations for action are made for the forest management plan, policy and maintenance and restoration. The recommendations focus on the integration of the results into the Forest Management Plan and the protection of the elements during forestry work, for example through colorful markings.The results of this work will be used by the Tranemåla Foundation, which owns and manages the area, to restore and maintain the cultural historical elements

Mussel Habitat Mapping in the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area (BISO)

A new method to map freshwater mussel habitats was developed and tested in theBigSouthForkNationalRiverand Recreation Area (BISO). The procedure involved using an Underwater Video Mapping System (UVMS) to record river substrate information in conjunction with Global Positioning System (GPS) to create geo-referenced video footage. Simultaneously, the river surface features were video-recorded using a similar geo-referenced video mapping system. Images from both videos were evaluated and used to produce habitat classifications in a Geographic Information System (GIS) format. The focus of the project was on mapping attributes in the river that are significant to freshwater mussel habitats. These attributes characterize river sections as either favorable or unfavorable to freshwater mussel populations. The attributes specifically selected were based on the habitat suitability needs of five federally endangered species of mussels that exist in BISO. By developing a GIS map of the habitat attributes, biologists knowledgeable in the needs of both adult and juvenile mussels of various species can identify locations suitable for augmenting mussel populations and habitat health. This project was conducted in 2004 and involved mapping river habitat in over 27.8 km (17.3 mi) of river in BISO. There are 182.2 km (113.2 mi) of river within BISO, so this assessment encompasses 15 % of the river mileage within the park. Most previous mussel studies have not evaluated long segments of river habitat. This work provides continuous mapping of several contiguous kilometers of river. The findings were stored in a GIS format and used to identify locations for possible re-introduction and management of mussels. Three sections of river in BISO were evaluated. The river segments were chosen to represent river conditions found in different parts of the park. The three sections studied were the Clear Fork Section in the southwest corner of BISO (in TN), Alum Ford Section at the northern park border (in KY), and the Leatherwood Ford Section in the middle of the park (in TN). In-stream physical habitat characteristics were captured by video cameras at the water surface and underwater. The images were then classified into habitat categories that are either favorable or unfavorable to the mussel populations. Applying UVMS technology was a unique way to gather habitat attributes and create maps. Five primary habitat attributes were evaluated. These attributes were: flow characteristics of the river (pool, run, and riffle), river depth, substrate classification, embeddedness of the substrate, and the presence of coal contamination. The UVMS above-water camera system was very successful in evaluating the flow characteristics of the river (distinguishing between pool, run, and riffle) in the three study sections in BISO. The UVMS underwater video footage was used to classify substrate characteristics. The evaluation for the presence of coal deposits indicated the Clear Fork Section did not have coal deposits in the video footage, whereas the Leatherwood Ford and Alum Ford sections had a significant amount of coal in the river. The UVMS was successful at locating areas of possible habitat for the five mussel species of interest. These areas are mostly in clusters along the river. There is significant overlap in the suitable habitat areas identified among the five species, largely because several of the species prefer similar habitat attributes. Four of the species require riffles for optimal habitat, and the flow characteristics in the Clear Fork and Leatherwood Ford sections provided this type of habitat. The other species was a pool-loving species, which had more optimal habitat in the pool segments in the Leatherwood Ford Section. The Alum Ford Section did not have any suitable mussel habitat because the impounded river forms a reservoir. The intermittent substrate classification points on the lake bottom showed continuous silt, which does not provide suitable habitat for any of the five species of endangered mussels. Out of the total 1,207 sites evaluated for habitat suitability, the majority were unsuitable as mussel habitat. The total number of suitable habitat sites identified per species ranged from 109 to 548 (this is the combined total for optimum, suboptimum and marginally suitable habitat). Mussels are very specific in terms of the habitat they thrive in, so a method to systematically identify these locations is a valuable tool. Overall very few areas of optimal habitat were identified. For the four species that thrive in riffle habitats, two (or less) optimal habitat sites were identified per species. The fifth species, the Cumberland Elktoe, thrives in pools. Over the length of the mapped rivers there was considerably more length of pool than riffle, so there were more opportunities for desirable habitat for this pool-loving species; 19 optimal habitat sites were identified. When the habitat criteria were expanded to encompass suboptimal and marginal criteria, the number of suitable habitat sites increased dramatically for all of the species. For each of the four riffle-loving species the expanded criteria identified suitable habitat in approximately 10% of the classified points. For the pool-loving Cumberland Elktoe, the expanded criteria identified suitable habitat in almost 50% of the classified points

Field trip guide to Oligocene Limestones and Caves in the Waitomo District

The field guide runs from Hamilton to Waitomo to Te Anga and return in limestone-dominated country developed in transgressive sedimentary deposits of the Oligocene Te Kuiti Group – a world class example of a temperate shelf carbonate depositional system. Attention focuses on the nature, distribution and paleoenvironmental controls of the main limestone facies and some of the mixed terrigenous-carbonate facies in the Group. Along the way features of the Waitomo karst landscape are noted and the trip concludes by going underground in the Ruakuri Cave to discuss cave origins and the evidence for paleoenvironmental changes locked up in speleothems

Science in the elementary and middle schools

Provides pedagogical insight concerning learners' pre-conceptions and misconceptions about the earth in space The resource being annotated is: http://www.dlese.org/dds/catalog_DLESE-000-000-008-745.htm

Inventory and Assessment of Cultural Resources Above the 1,551.5-Foot Contour Line, Stacy Reservoir Recreation Areas, Concho, Coleman, and Runnels Counties, Texas

In August and September 1986, personnel from Prewitt and Associates, Inc. conducted an inventory and assessment of cultural resources in five recreational area tracts above the conservation pool elevation of the proposed Stacy Reservoir in Concho, Coleman. and Runnels counties, Texas. These investigations were sponsored by the Colorado River Municipal Water District in compliance with federal requirements for a construction permit from the Corps of Engineers. Approximately 1,690 acres were surveyed. and five previously unrecorded sites were discovered and documented. Cairn feature sites 41CC213 and 41CC237 are deemed potentially significant and should be preserved or investigated to determine their significance if preservation cannot be assured. In the course of the survey. 16 previously recorded sites were encountered and. in the case of 5 of these sites. adjustments were made in their boundaries. Concurrent with the survey. 11 localities and 34 sites within the previously surveyed conservation pool area were revisited. A preliminary examination of the geologic context of these sites was conducted which resulted in recognition of important geoarcheological data potential for sites in the alluviated valleys of the project area

Sinkhole Analysis and Classification Using Pictometry in Genesee County, NY and Surrounding Areas

Oblique Imagery was used to assess 250 depressional features within the carbonate bedrock region of Genesee County, NY and surrounding areas. Of these features, 110 were confirmed to be sinkholes. The analysis of Pictometry Oblique Imagery, with images spanning the past 15 years, was performed to sample each individual sinkhole for each available time-step image. Parameters were created using GIS-based data and imagery characteristics, and statistically analyzed for confirmed sinkholes to assess similarities and differences between the sinkholes. A cluster analysis showed that there is a relationship between sinkholes and a variety of GIS data types. These statistically derived associations suggest that the following factors are indicative of sinkholes: Visible Depression, Secondary Characteristics, Target Soil Presence/Absence, Moisture Content, Land Use, Type (water/land), Size, and Shape. The study suggested that distance from visible escarpments and bedrock geology, two guidelines for finding karst features suggested by previous studies, were not statistically correlated to sinkholes in Genesee County and surrounding areas